Even though I said I wasn’t going to buy any more Kick-Ass (I didn’t!), I still ended up reading the whole series before seeing the movie. And thankfully, I can feel good about writing a positive review, because the gay-bashing found in the comic did not appear in the movie. Those who have read the comic will know there is one other gay-themed plot point, and if you found that offensive in the book, you’ll probably also find it offensive in the movie, but I actually felt it was handled rather well. Without giving too much away, it’s one of those “it’s supposed to be funny because people think he’s gay even though he’s not” situations. Not necessarily original or good writing, but it certainly could have been worse.

On the topic of writing, you can’t deny that the comic was a page-turner. It was hard to put down, and I felt like that sense of urgency carried over into the movie. There were several great quips and one-liners, perhaps the most notable was: “With no power comes no responsibility.”

We talked after the movie about the acting, and while I don’t consider myself to be a great judge of it, nobody I spoke with was disappointed. I thought Chloe Moretz stole the show as Hit Girl, with her foul mouth and adult demeanor. And lets just say that this was one of the better roles for Nicolas Cage in the last few years.

There were several notable differences from comic to movie, but they were actually rather minor, and didn’t mess with the overall plot too much. (Only one really pissed me off. Lets just say they really hollywood-ized the love story.) I also think they gave the comic-book-readers in the audience a couple of curveballs intentionally so we had some real surprises, especially one big reveal toward the end of the movie.

Overall, this Kick-Ass was a great movie!!! Easily a must-see for fans of the comic book, and also equally enjoyable by those who haven’t read it at all. It makes a great addition to more cerebral superhero movie genre, but had plenty of action for those who just want to see some kick-ass fight scenes. Highly recommended.